... there are a number of us who feel basketball is overdue for the same stats revolution that swept through baseball ... and in fact that it has already happened, with San Antonio being the best example ... but it works for SA because most teams are stuck in the stone age.

If Masai is a believer in advanced stats, and feels fully in control (part of the negotiation process), then it would make total sense to sweep out the 'stone age' scouts ('X has so much athleticism, we can't pass him up') and bring in all fresh blood ('look at his shooting percentage, not his points'). I'm thinking Billy Beane ... let's see the results.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:05 PM

hotfuzz

Now, if he can convince Casey to be the defensive coach and hire one of the Van gundy brothers.

Hey, one can dream, right?

Edit: Clean out the roster, hire a lame duck coach, and convince the board to tank :D

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:19 PM

Sig

Quote:

RandomGuy wrote:

Nuggets fans dislike their coach, that's all I need to know, to not want him. Too many lessons proved me right, that if a person isn't welcomed in his team by the fans, then he won't be any better in TO.

Where did you see this?

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:20 PM

TRex

Problem with tanking is even if you finish with the worst or 2nd worst record in the league there's no guarantee that you're going to get the 1st or 2nd overall pick.

I say keep the core. Add veterans players on this team and DRAFT WELL. That's the most important thing specially for a franchise like the Raptors.

Ujiri the last 2 years got Kenneth Faried and Evan Fournier late in the 1st round. 2 very good players.

Btw, speaking of draft. NBADraft.net now has Shabazz Muhammad going to Cleveland at 19th. Crazy how his stock has fallen these last couple of months.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:26 PM

Puffer

Quote:

thead wrote:

I get it. I just think if your GM you make the effort to learn. It's lazy for a GM to draft a Nigerian player because he knows him.

Unless the fact that he knows him means that he is the only one that actually has an appreciation for how good he is. We know it is still possible for talent to fly under the radar in the NCAA. Even more so on the African continent.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:32 PM

Puffer

Quote:

Puffer wrote:

Anyone hear about a Ujiri press conference? Monday? I would have thought they would have organized something by now.

"Ujiri, officially hired Friday on a five-year deal worth a reported $15 million, is expected to meet with the media Tuesday in Toronto."The Star

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:34 PM

mcHAPPY

Quote:

Puffer wrote:

"Ujiri, officially hired Friday on a five-year deal worth a reported $15 million, is expected to meet with the media Tuesday in Toronto."The Star

That is good news.

I could be wrong but my interpretation would mean he is free to get to work now and his commitments in Denver are done.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 04:35 PM

ezz_bee

Quote:

white men can't jump wrote:

. And even his second stint in GSW, the team that made the playoffs as underdogs, then won 48 games the next year and missed them, was actually quite talented (B. Davis, Harrington, J-RIch, Stephen Jackson, Monta Ellis...from who I can remember).

Matt Barnes... Andris Beidrins?

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:04 PM

Blacklash2k4

Quote:

Sig wrote:

Where did you see this?

RealGM Forums and ProSportDaily Forums. They all hate George Karl as much as we hate BC.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:07 PM

Blacklash2k4

Quote:

TRex wrote:

Problem with tanking is even if you finish with the worst or 2nd worst record in the league there's no guarantee that you're going to get the 1st or 2nd overall pick.

I say keep the core. Add veterans players on this team and DRAFT WELL. That's the most important thing specially for a franchise like the Raptors.

Ujiri the last 2 years got Kenneth Faried and Evan Fournier late in the 1st round. 2 very good players.

Btw, speaking of draft. NBADraft.net now has Shabazz Muhammad going to Cleveland at 19th. Crazy how his stock has fallen these last couple of months.

Especially since there is a good track record that the worst team will never get the 1st overall pick...

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:25 PM

CT2010

Quote:

white men can't jump wrote:

Yeah, also it should be noted that Stefanski probably didn't want to stay. He took a demotion coming to Toronto since he was the GM in Philly. I'm pretty sure he was hoping to get the GM job after BC. He'll probably go looking for a situation where he's either GM, or like in Toronto, 2nd in command so he's one step away from being in control.

Well, not really a demotion. The man was fired from Philly, so I would say that from unemployed to Asst. GM is a bit promotion, wouldn't you?

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:34 PM

phez

Quote:

Matt52 wrote:

A lot of people were worried, myself included, that him coming in with a lot of the close relationships would mean more of the same!

Boy were a lot of us, myself included, WRONG!

It would seem Ujiri is actually having the opposite effect. Maybe he knows exactly who needs to go and is going to do that.

How Jim Kelly lasted this long, I"ll never know, but with him gone it looks like there is a real changing of the guard.

What didn't you like about Raptors scouting?

I won't argue that it was weird that they went against pretty much every draft prediction for the past couple of years. But at the same time I'm not going to sit here and say they were bad picks, far from it.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:37 PM

RepRaptorsintheUSA

Personally I thought our scouting sucked. I guess AA is an exception. I also love the fact Ujiri made the very difficult Carmelo trade. Getting rid of Bargs (and getting something in return) is going to be challenging.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:38 PM

Usagi_yo_Jimbo

Anybody here know if or when Masai will have a press conference soon? Pretty exicted to hear what direction he's going to take this team.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:46 PM

mcHAPPY

Quote:

phez wrote:

What didn't you like about Raptors scouting?

I won't argue that it was weird that they went against pretty much every draft prediction for the past couple of years. But at the same time I'm not going to sit here and say they were bad picks, far from it.

Jim Kelly has been around since the purple and cartoon dinosaurs.

He was here before BC.

He was on hand for some of the biggest draft day f*ck ups of all time:

DeRozan versus so many point guards in 2009
Joey Graham vs. Grangers in 2005
Rafael Araujo vs. Igoudala in 2004

I can live with DeRozan pick - it wasn't bad by any stretch. However in 2004 and 2005 I was literally screaming at the TV.

Bottom line is I am glad to see him gone and a lot of the old guard shown the door. It smells like spring at MLSE.

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 05:49 PM

white men can't jump

Quote:

CT2010 wrote:

Well, not really a demotion. The man was fired from Philly, so I would say that from unemployed to Asst. GM is a bit promotion, wouldn't you?

Smartass

Sun Jun 2nd, 2013, 06:02 PM

thead

Quote:

Matt52 wrote:

That is good news.

I could be wrong but my interpretation would mean he is free to get to work now and his commitments in Denver are done.

It would likely be a conflict of interest to do anything for Denver now anyways

I did a google search trying to found out how long Jim Kelly has been with the Raps...since the beginning as a talent evaluator ...and I found this 2 year old thread as one of the first results, freakin hilarious. Which is also where I got the answer since it had a link to a Star article. The thread is about these 2 guys, Kelly and Gherardini, possibly having their jobs changed in some way.

Gheradini has done a lot for Basketball Canada. For all his faults I can't hate on that. Kelly on the other hand...he's the main assessor of talent we have... his list of misses is brutal. He's needed to retire for some time. As selfish as it sounds, I would have never let Masai go. I would have promoted him to GM. I think all this shuffling is cosmetic and too late. BC had the right guy here and now talk of bringing in a GM to handle the President role is lip service.